Sixty Nine Years

Today marks the Sixty Ninth anniversary of the invasion of France by Allied forces. The young men who threw themselves against fortifications and men manning “Fortress Europa” are mostly gone now. They defeated the Nazis and liberated Europe, then they went back home and lead their lives. Every day there are fewer and fewer of them and every year it seems that fewer members of the following generations remember what they did and the sacrifices the entire nation made to rid the world of tyranny.

That’s a shame, because sacrifice and effort such as that should never be forgotten.

We should also remember how narrow was the margin of victory. The initial landings on Omaha beach were disastrous and for hours the issue was in doubt. A defeat on Omaha would likely have required withdrawing all of the troops and the Germans would have stopped the invasion.

The beaches were held, the Germans were defeated, and eleven months later, Europe was free. Or at least half of it was free, but that’s a story for a different day.

For today, let’s remember the courage of the young men who risked everything to free Europe.

Comments

Thank you for remembering. I wish more people did. My 99yr old grandfather and 94yr old cousin (Al Jones, pilot), both part of the RAF, were part of that. They are both still alive, and wish more people remembered. I do too. The stories that generation has to share is amazing.
Thanks TOTW.

You’re welcome. My thanks to your grandfather and uncle for their service. The sacrifices that they and all of their generation made saved us all.

All About Me

After a long career as a field EMS provider, I'm now doing all that back office stuff I used to laugh at. Life is full of ironies, isn't it?
I still live in the Northeast corner of the United States, although I hope to change that to another part of the country more in tune with my values and beliefs.
I still write about EMS, but I'm adding more and more non EMS subject matter.
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